City officials, developers and Metro representatives participated in a groundbreaking for the project on Tuesday.

The 8.5-acre project, which has been nine years in the making, is expected to be completed by fall 2011. Community leaders have said they hope the development, which is being built by Urban Atlantic of Bethesda and A&R Development of Baltimore, will draw more retailers to the corridor.

"We are thrilled to announce the start of construction at Rhode Island Station and are grateful to the many public and private partners who came together to accomplish a truly remarkable project in an historically challenging economic climate," Urban Atlantic President Vicki Davis said in a statement.

And they need to be market rate apartments since they wont be condo's. I live in Eckington and we have enough 'affordable' housing not only in our neighborhood, but in Ward 5. We have become the new Anacostia lately and its about time our property values start going up. Now, if they could only re-develop the Home Depot shopping center mess and do something with where the old ghetto safeway used to be.